c. 2007 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Sitting on stools on a convention center stage, the Revs. Roy Medley, Tyrone Pitts and Daniel Vestal recalled how they came to know each other as they worked together in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Their almost casual chat took the place of a more formal sermon as several Baptist groups that usually meet separately _ and express theology differently _ held a recent joint worship service here.

“What you see on this stage tonight is three brothers in Christ,” said Vestal, head of the Atlanta-based Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) to a combined congregation of about 5,000 worshippers. “We’ve gotten to know each other and love each other and we found that we have a whole lot more in common than we have that divides us.”

Baptists from a range of fellowships and denominations came together for worship, rallies and to say _ at least symbolically _ that splits and divisions from the past will not prevent them from joining hands on issues like missions and religious freedom.

They often disagree with more conservative Southern Baptists, but they want people to know they are Baptist, too _ just a different kind.

“They want to be able to define Baptists to themselves and in the public square since it often appears that Southern Baptists are defining everyone,” said the Rev. Bill Leonard, dean of the Wake Forest University Divinity School in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Now, Baptists who agree on issues like reducing poverty and hunger and respecting religious diversity are seeking ways to actively find common ground.

Medley, general secretary of the Valley Forge, Pa.-based American Baptist Churches USA, said the joint worship _ which bridged the end of the CBF meeting and the start of his denomination’s biennial gathering _ is the kind of thing that “makes God happy.”

“This is, in and of itself, an awesome God moment,” he said. “American Baptists, Cooperative Baptists, Progressive Baptists coming together. … It gladdens our hearts.”

The American Baptists and the Southern Baptist Convention split more than 100 years ago over lingering racial tensions, while the CBF split in the 1990s after the Southern Baptists took a more conservative turn. The Washington-based Progressive National Baptist Convention, which Pitts serve as general secretary, was born in the civil rights movement at a time when racial issues divided many churches and even the movement itself.

Pitts said Katrina brought Baptists together to form a network that has fostered rebuilding churches and communities.

“With that joint effort, we were able to do more together than we would have ever been able to do separately,” he said.

Earlier in the day, about 150 Baptists of different races, regions and theological perspectives stood outside the U.S. Capitol to recall a 1920 sermon by Southern Baptist preacher George W. Truett that urged a special focus on religious liberty.

“Historically Baptists have had a hard time sticking together and some things have not changed much,” said J. Brent Walker, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, which sponsored the rally. “But one thing that does bind us … is a fervent dedication to defending and extending religious liberty, not just for ourselves but for everyone.”

During the joint worship service, Cooperative and American Baptists announced a partnership to send missionary couples to Thailand and Haiti. At a news conference, Baptist leaders said the groups would work together to start churches. And Medley said the CBF, American Baptists and the Alliance of Baptists (a smaller moderate group) will co-sponsor a forum between Baptists and Muslims “so that we can begin to agree to work more towards issues of understanding and peace together.”

Baptist leaders also affirmed their plans for a larger gathering planned for next January in Atlanta. With the encouragement of former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, both Baptists, there will be a “Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant.” Predominantly white and historically African-American Baptist groups will emphasize their commitment to feeding the hungry, promoting peace, and caring for the sick and marginalized.

(BEGIN OPTIONAL TRIM)

Southern Baptist Convention President Frank Page has stated that he commends efforts to help “a hurting world,” but he doesn’t plan to attend the Atlanta gathering.

“I will not be a part of any smokescreen left-wing liberal agenda that seeks to deny the greatest need in our world, that being that the lost be shown the way to eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord,” he said in May.

Leaders who met in Washington deny any partisan leanings, and said joint work on poverty is a part of the gospel commandments they follow.

(END OPTIONAL TRIM)

Rank-and-file Baptists seemed to revel in the joint worship, putting aside internal differences and hoping it was a sign of future cooperation.

“It’s a wonderful gathering of the Baptist family, an historical time to bring the Northern and the Southern back together in fellowship,” said the Rev. John Daughtery of Pineville, La., a state CBF coordinator.

Walt White, a member of the American Baptist Churches’ global consultants team, said the worship service gave a refreshing perspective on Baptists who even argue among themselves over abortion, homosexuality and how much to work with non-Baptist groups.

“So often recently, Baptists have been known for what they’re against,” he said. “I would much rather we be known for what we’re for than for what we’re against.”

KRE DS END BANKS950 words, with optional trim to 850

Photos from a joint Baptist worship service are available via https://religionnews.com.

With sidebar, RNS-BAPTISTS-100, transmitted July 3.